


As The Sun Sets

by ReyAndor19



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Inspired by Legend (Marie Lu), Inspired by Novel, Jakku, Not Beta Read, Plague, Please Don't Hate Me, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:14:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23855203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReyAndor19/pseuds/ReyAndor19
Summary: When Rey is late for their nightly meetings, Ben can’t help worrying that something is wrong.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 11
Kudos: 15





	As The Sun Sets

**Author's Note:**

> So a few quick things about this story. I wrote this a month or two ago for a friend. It is not supposed to relate to COVID-19 in any way, I was actually inspired to write this after reading Legend by Marie Lu. This is just something I crammed together real quick, but hopefully you enjoy. Stay healthy everyone <3

Ben crouched at the edge of the roof. What was taking her so long tonight? He’d been waiting for nearly an hour, and the sky had turned pitch-black a while ago. The plague patrols had already swept through the neighborhood. (Of course they’d skipped Rey’s home, thinking it was still abandoned. They didn’t know that the 16-year-old had moved in and adopted a group of other orphans. But that was for the better). 

He was beginning to consider revealing to the kids that he was alive (and the famous street criminal Kylo Ren who worked to disrupt the Republic). It would be worth it. Rey was  _ never _ late. Ever since she’d found out that he’d escaped the experiments and they’d set up their nighttime meetings, her back porch becoming their tryst. Had it really been six years since he’d failed his Trial? He tried to distract himself with the memory. Thankfully, it worked. 

_ He and Rey had walked into the Trials together, uncertain of what the future would bring. They’d sat through their separate interviews, taken their physical tests and sat next to each other for their written exams. They’d chatted nervously as they waited to receive their results. Then in a sudden blur, they’d been separated. Rey had just barely passed (as most poor kids like her did), and was destined to a life in the ‘less fortunate’ parts of town. Basically, she returned to Jakku sector, her home, and resumed her normal life. Ben, on the other hand, had failed. He didn’t know how- he was top of his class, he stayed up late every night to practice, he had been training for the interviews and physical portion since he was seven. The Trial officials had put him into a group with a bunch of other kids who’d also failed, herded them all into a train, and he’d exchanged one last look with Rey before leaving for what the Republic called ‘labor camps’. Maybe the rich swallowed that, but everyone in Jakku sector had heard the stories passed through Niima Outpost. While the government said you were working to help the Republic, you were really used as a lab rat, part of some experiment. Ben had been one of the fortunate ones- he’d ended up with a scar that ran diagonally down his face, but when they’d injected some sort of chemical to see how low his heart rate could go, his heart had temporarily stopped. He’d woken up in a room full of dead bodies, passed by each one as he’d walked to the exit (he’d known most of them, even been friends with a few) but he eventually escaped. That was when he’d become Kylo Ren. _

What was taking Rey so long tonight? Another ten minutes had passed. He searched for the old lantern she lit when all the other kids had fallen asleep, when it was safe for them to meet. She couldn’t have forgotten the date, there was a big calendar at Niima, and she went there every day to trade scavenged scraps of metal for food. Maybe she was running low on candles, and didn’t want to waste them on lighting the lantern? No, he’d brought her four brand new ones last time they’d talked. He ran through every plausible explanation of why she wasn’t signaling him. 

Then it hit him.

_ The plague.  _

It had popped up in Jakku a few weeks ago and taken root. A newer, deadly strain, that mercilessly killed any who were infected. It didn’t help that Jakku’s residents visited Niima Outpost every single day. 

Rey had to offer her metal at the very center of Niima, Unkar Plutt’s trading booth, every day. 

_ But she would have caught it weeks ago then. It’s probably one of the kids- didn’t she say Arashell was always getting sick? Rey must have to care for Arashell, that’s why she missed our meeting.  _

None of his excuses helped. Ben knew he had to find out for himself. But how could he sneak in? 

He sighed. Probably best to take the most direct way. Sliding down the handrails of the fire escape’s steps, he hit the ground running, stopping when he finally reached her door. As he raised his hand to knock, he paused. This was risking a lot. What if she was just busy, and had forgotten the meeting date? It had happened once before. But once in five years. She was one of the smartest people he knew (he still didn’t understand how either of their scores were as low as they were), and remembered almost everything she heard. 

_ Besides, if she’s sick...  _

He took a deep breath and knocked a few times. After a minute, a young boy with dark brown hair and eyes opened it. 

“Who are you?” He asked suspiciously.

“A friend of Rey’s,” he said. “You’re Temiri, aren’t you?” 

The boy nodded. Ben had heard about ten-year-old Temiri from Rey- he was kind and protective of his friend Arashell. They’d been slaves, owned by Bargwill Tomder. They escaped together, and eventually were picked up by Rey. Still, he couldn’t help but notice how the boy’s face darkened when he mentioned Rey. Was that a sign? 

“Come in,” the boy whispered softly, looking around to make sure no one was watching. Ben nodded, worry creeping its way into his thoughts. 

“You’re Kylo, aren’t you?” Temiri asked as he led the way down a small hallway.

“Yeah. That’s what everyone calls me now.”

“She always tells us tales when we can’t sleep. Always about the same person, Kylo Ren. People on the streets says he’s some sort of legend, standing up against the Republic. Others say he’s a criminal. Some think he’s just trying to get the public to like him so he can strike back against them when he finally has their trust.”

“What does she say?”

“She says he’s kind. He’s smart, but unlike most he’s willing to share his knowledge. He’ll lend a helping hand to kids like us. She tells us to look closely at the wanted signs. They don’t say most dangerous criminal, they say most wanted. Because he helps kids like us. She talks about Kylo Ren like no one ever does. She tells stories...and if you watch her closely, her eyes tear up sometimes. That’s how you know if the story is true or not. Some of them are tall tales she picks up at Niima. But when she cries, it’s not another made-up story. It’s something she saw with her own eyes.” Temiri had stopped outside the door that Ben knew led to Rey’s room.

“Can we go inside?” He asked carefully. The boy nodded silently, his eyes solemn.

Ben took another deep breath and pushed open the door. 

Red-haired Arashell sat by Rey’s bed, a worried expression on her face. Oniho, another boy stood nearby. Arashell looked up as the door opened, and her eyes widened. “Who are you?”

“A friend of Rey’s,” he repeated. 

“Who let you in?” Oniho asked. They were both prepared to defend the girl who was basically their older sister. 

“Temiri. My name’s...well you probably know me better as Kylo Ren. But my name’s Ben.”

Arashell and Oniho shared a quick look, before relaxing again.

“Is she okay?” He asked- all the worried looks and grim expressions were scaring him. 

“Come see,” Arashell said softly. 

“Injured on the job again?” He asked teasingly as he came over to see for himself what had everyone so tense and quiet.

“Ben?” Rey’s eyes opened, and he immediately knew something was wrong. She was squinting at him, and her eyes seemed to be...black? He realized with a start that it was because her irises were bleeding. 

This wasn’t the plague.

It was something worse


End file.
